Month: March 2016

I pray for caregivers everywhere. Let them know that they are not alone and that you will restore them day by day. I pray that you will surround them with people who can be there to support, love, and assist with whatever needs they may have. Help them to realize that even when they make mistakes your loving hand is there to guide and direct.

In those times when the road is rough and the mountain is hard to climb let them know that you are there. Give the caregivers your peace that passes man understands and help those who care for loved ones to trust you more. Even in those times of hopeless, may they be reminded that their hope is in you.

I pray that you will help caregivers to show love and compassion as they care for their loved ones. The task of caregiving is difficult and sometimes seems impossible to accomplish but God thank you for being there. Thank you for your Spirit that abides in all who love and trust you. Help the caregivers to rest in your loving embrace.

I ask your blessing upon the caregivers and the ones they care for. Thank you for hearing this prayer.

Today is my birthday and I wanted to take a moment to say how thankful I am to see another birthday. The older I get the more I value each day, especially a birthday. The fact that I am still here means that God has kept me and that my work on earth is not complete. Age brings about a new understanding of how precious life is and the awesome gift of another day.

Now, I could tell you that life is perfect and I have no issues. Although that would sound nice, it would not be true. Even at my age, which I will not share on this blog, I still struggle with some of the challenges that life presents. There are things that happen in my life that cause me to feel rejection, pain, heartaches, and disappointments. I still have a desire to achieve things in life. I yet yearn to go places I have not been. I even experience regrets for past mistakes and wrong decisions that I have made over the years.

See, that is one of the things that growing older will do, aging will make you take a long hard look at your life. As you look at life, where you are and where you have been, sometimes we do not like what we see. The wise person who does not like what they see will work to make the necessary changes. But the foolish person will look, identify, and even verbalize the error of their ways and continue walking in the dark.

So my gift to myself today is to identify things in my life that do not please God, do not line up with my purpose, and do not enhance my growth. Once I recognize those areas that need work, I will start today moving toward becoming a better me.

As your gift to me, I encourage you to reflect on life and how you can live the life God meant for you to live and begin working toward that goal. You really are the “apple of His eye.” Be the person you were created to be. Christ died that each of us may be free, let’s walk in that liberty. Make a bold declaration today that “I am who God says I am and anything that holds me back from fulfilling my destiny has to GO!”

Happy Birthday to me, and let’s give thanks for a new day with new opportunities to improve ourselves. I am thankful for new mercies afforded me today. I am thankful for a God who forgives and loves me even when I do not deserve it. I am thankful for my family and my friends. I am even thankful for those whose actions have initiated a self-evaluation of my motive and as a result caused me to seek God more. I am thankful for all that God has given me in this life. And I am thankful that you are reading my blog post.

The plight of a caregiver can be lonely. Caregivers will make many adjustments in life in order to care for their loved one. Unless someone has experienced the role of a caregiver it will be difficult for them to understand the challenges that caregivers face.

I wanted to write this book simply to say you are not alone in your caregiver’s journey. I understand what you are experiencing. You have earned the right to complain every now and then. The commitment you have made to care for your loved one is monumental. You will have good days and not so good days but I want to encourage you to stay the course.

Tap into the community resources that are available to caregivers. Accept the support of family and friends. Whether it is to provide a meal, an offer to sit with your loved one or just a quick visit. Remember God has placed people in your life that can be there to support you as you take this journey.

My mother use to tell me that “God would not put more on you than you can bear.” Once I became caregiver for my husband, I understood what she was saying. God will place people around you who can assist you in bearing the load. I am thankful for the good people in my life that are there to assist, encourage and support me during this season of my life.

It has been said that the caregiver must first take care of them self before they can adequately take care of another. I agree with that statement whole heartedly but it is not always an easy thing to do. Caring for a loved one can be all consuming with little time left for anything or anyone else.

Most caregivers go about their daily task not asking for accolades or awards. They perform their duties out of love and compassion for the person they care for. In spite of the demands and frustrations that accompany caregiving many still consider it an honor and a blessing to care for the people they love.

My training and experience as a registered nurse had not prepared me for the voyage I was about to embark upon as my husband’s caregiver. While I was medically prepared, I was not prepared emotionally for the impact his illness would have on our family.

I challenge you not to only look at the task the caregivers perform but look at the heart they perform them with. Caregivers are real people with real emotions many times afraid to express them for fear that others will think they are insensitive. After all the caregiver is not the one who has the terminal diagnosis. The caregiver is not the one in pain and living with an incurable disease. For these reasons many caregivers suffer in silence.

In many cases the pain of the caregiver is equal if not greater than the one who is ill.

As I sat by my husband’s hospital bed the other night, I was able to put the finishing touches on my manuscript about my journey as a caregiver. I started typing at 11:00 PM and finished at 5:30 AM. I have really enjoyed writing this book, and I hope you will enjoy reading it. Writing has always been somewhat therapeutic for me and writing this manuscript was not disappointing.

I was not sure if the timing was right for me to write this book. Writing while I was still in the midst of care giving did not seem beneficial. However, the longer I thought about it the more I came to believe that now was the time. Quite often when something has ended our brain only recalls the pleasant parts. I wanted this book to be authentic and personable.

Caring for a loved one is a difficult but necessary process. In my book I share some of the challenges that I have faced over the past eight years. It is my desire for the reader to be encouraged and empowered. Caregivers must remember to take care of themselves. In the book I share what has been helpful for me. Many caregivers have gone before me and many will come after yet each one’s journey is unique.